With the engine still running, Paxton put the van into the first gear, and then slammed his foot on the gas. The tires screamed on the cement pavement. The van shot out of the garage.
Krys tore off her mask. She made contact with Kaspar’s concerned eyes. She gave him a cocky half smile and pulled out the memory stick from her flak jacket. Krys moved towards the front. She handed the stick into Kilbourne’s awaiting left hand. Kilbourne took the stick and inserted it into the black laptop that rested on his lap.
“Pretty impressive, huh?” Krys asked aloud as she moved back to her seat.
“Pretty impressive,” Kaspar replied. “Or pretty stupid. What were you thinking, agreeing to do that?”
“I told you I would be fine. You think that was the first time I’ve had to sneak into a building?” Krys fired back. She patted Li on the shoulder. “Yung knows, don’t cha?”
Kaspar ignored Li’s head nods. “What if they would have caught you in there?”
“Then I’d be dead. But, they didn’t catch me, did they?”
“I…guess you’re right.”
Krys’s eyes lit up. “You were worried about me, weren’t you?”
“Of course I was. You were going in there all alone…”
“Is Mr. Tough Guy Boxer getting sentimental on me?” Krys asked. Her eyes grew wider which forced Kaspar to feel that strange feeling again…
“Yeah, well, don’t get too excited.” Kaspar replied.
“Who said I was excited?” Krys replied with a frown.
Up front, Paxton listened with great interest to what Clarke was explaining to him. He listened with disbelief as Clarke revealed what was going on with the water supply. Apparently, the USR had pumped a top secret, experimental drug into it. The funny thing about the drug was that it only seemed to affect women, based on the reports Krys managed to download.
“Holy shit,” Clarke said.
“What now?” Paxton wondered.
“You’re not going to believe this…how could this be?”
“Just spill it already!”
“The team leader for this operation is…”
Paxton listened to Clarke rattle off the name. He cursed out loud then slammed his fist onto the dash board. Paxton ordered Clarke to run that name by him again. He just couldn’t believe what his friend was saying to him. Clarke repeated the name.
“Any possibility that that’s a mistake?” Paxton asked.
“None,” Clarke replied.
Kilbourne moved the computer screen over for Paxton to take a look over. The name was there, in bold letters, clear as day.
That name…how could it be?
Forty-One
Kaspar looked to the front. Something caught his eye out of the windshield. This neighborhood…it looked too familiar. He searched his mind for a moment. It took a few seconds of reflection to realize where they were. It had been a while since the last time he was here, when Krys helped him escape his apartment, actually.
“Hey, boss,” Kaspar said. “What are we doing here? Does Danny have a recruit for us or something?”
Paxton sighed. “Yeah, kid, something like that.”
“Well, that silly son of a bitch picked a funny time to tell us about it, right in the middle of an operation.”
“This operation hasn’t ended.”
Kaspar could feel his stomach turn. What could that mean, this operation hasn’t ended? Did Danny know something vital? But, how could he, if he only handled the recruitment part? Kaspar decided just to sit and wait. He didn’t have the heart to ask Paxton what he meant. He looked around the back and saw Krys’s eyes staring into his. Kaspar looked away from them and stared down at his gloved hands. He rubbed them together. What did it all mean?
The van came to a halt. The team threw on their masks then filed out. Kaspar was the last squad member out. He grabbed the double doors and slammed them shut. With his PSD slung over his shoulder, he started to make his way towards the house. Something grabbed him from behind on his arm.
“Ryan.” Paxton said through his mask.
“Yes, sir?”
“Danny…he’s been playing both sides.”
Kaspar gripped his PSD with both hands. “Run that by me again?”
“He’s been working for them.”
“No way,” Kaspar said. A wave of denial hit him. “Not Danny…there’s no way.”
“I’m afraid it’s true. Robert confirmed it for me.”
“Then there’s a mistake.”
“No,” Paxton said. He shook his head. “There is no mistake. His name is all over those reports we just got. He’s signed off on all of them.”
“No…no.”
“Ryan, I know this is going to be difficult for you. But, I need you to stay calm in there. We need whatever Intel he has.” Paxton said in a soft yet stern voice.
“Look, we’ll get the information from him. But, I’m sure there’s some kind of explanation for all this. If he is working for them, then how come he helps you with your recruiting?” Kaspar wondered.
“That’s what we’re here to find out. Can I trust you on this?”
“Yes, sir.” Kaspar replied. He reaffirmed his grip on his gun.
“All right,” Paxton replied with a head motion to move in. “Showtime, kid.”
Denial still filled Kaspar’s mind as he followed Paxton to the house. There’s no way, he kept telling himself. Not Danny, not the man who became like a father to him…the father that he never had. When he reached the front porch, his fists balled together in anger as another thought entered: Mother.
The front door’s foundations were shattered after a hard kick from Kilbourne’s boot. Everyone filed through the front of the house with their weapons drawn. Kaspar was last once more, his PSD shouldered, his finger on the trigger and ready to fire. Danny walked through the back hallway with his robe on and a drink in hand. He didn’t look surprised at all, almost like he had invited guests over for cocktails.
He was ordered to place his hands on his head by Paxton. Danny did so. His glass went crashing to the ground and shattered on the tile floor. The light brown liquid moved in all directions. Danny showed a look of disappointment.
The old man then walked across the kitchen to the dining room. He pulled back one of the chairs next to his table and sat down. He pulled a pack of his cigarettes out of his bathrobe and laid them on the table. Danny moved his eyes across to each of the masked vigilantes in his kitchen without saying a word to any of them. Kaspar had to fight back every impulse inside to shoot Danny in his face and be done with it.
Answers first. That was the only thought that kept him from pulling the trigger.
“You all can take off those masks,” Danny said. He opened the pack of smokes and shook one out. “I know who you all are.”
Kaspar was the first to rip his mask off. Moisture started to build up in his frozen blue eyes. Tears that were equal parts anger, fatigue, and sadness. He looked Danny square in the eye, the only thing his old friend could do was look away. Kaspar kept his gaze on him, as well as his PSD aimed right at the chest.
“Ryan,” Paxton said as he took of his mask. “Lower your weapon.”
The order went unheard. His aim, true and steady, remained. His trigger finger ready to fire if Danny so much as made a move or a sound. He was lost in his own world where vengeance rained down on the deserving. Just do it, Kaspar thought as his trigger finger began to tremble. Do it!
“Kaspar!” Paxton yelled.
“Sir,” Kaspar replied.
“Remember what we talked about outside.”
Kaspar lowered his weapon. He shook his head as he did so. Danny breathed a sigh of relief. At least he would get to live a little bit longer, a prospect that Kaspar did not want to acknowledge. He wanted the treacherous son of a bitch killed right here and now. He breathed in then spit on Danny’s floor. Kaspar turned his back to his new enemy. It was the only thing he could do to prevent himself from doing something stupid. He look
ed at Krys as he walked into the living room. Her face, which had given him comfort before, did not do so. Not now.
“Just a matter of time, I guess.” Danny said. He placed the cigarette between his lips.
Paxton stepped forward. “Danny, just what in the hell is going on?”
“I guess you figured me out, eh, John?”
“Just answer the question. We’ve got you signing off on USR documents. Documents that name you as a team lead for one of their operations. Is that true?” Paxton demanded.
Danny removed the cigarette from his lips. “Yes.”
“Why? What caused you to turn?”
“Whoever said anything about turning?” Danny asked with a laugh. “Has it even occurred to you that I’ve been working with them this whole time?”
“How is that possible?” Paxton wondered.
Danny laughed and replaced the cigarette back between his lips. He took his Zippo, using the flame to light up. He took a slow drag, a laugh allowing the smoke to escape his mouth. Danny stared at the five faces that looked stone cold right back at him.
“We need you.” Danny said once he composed himself.
“What?” Paxton demanded.
Danny took another drag. Paxton pondered in the brief moment of silence what he was just told. Danny had been a double agent, playing both sides at the same time. Or, was he only playing one side? Something about that statement, ‘we need you’, caused his heart to sink and mind to race. He gripped his Glock with both hands. Danny had better start answering his questions right now.
“You ever notice,” Danny said between puffs, “how every time you guys cause a ruckus, the USR seems to get bigger? The enforcement on the streets grows. The arrest counts stack higher.”
Paxton grit his teeth. “You’ve been using us…this whole time.”
“Life’s a bitch, ain’t it, soldier?”
Escalation. A term that Paxton was familiar with at an intimate level. He had to be to even start his own unit. Escalation was something he knew would happen when he built his rebel unit in the first place. His team would fight the corruption around them. The USR would step up enforcement as it would be necessary for them to fight back. They would grow desperate to find the ‘terrorists’ responsible for the chaos in the city. Paxton was desperate, as well, to see things change; to aid in the destruction of the USR. In that desperation, it never dawned on him that he could be used so that the tail end of escalation could take place. Paxton’s breathing grew heavy.
“How deep does this shit go?” Paxton demanded.
“You think there are other rebels out there, don’t you?”
“Of course there are.”
“We’ve been able to eliminate them.” Danny took a drag. “One by one, we’ve just focused the media attention on you guys.”
“Why just us?”
Danny laughed. “We know you very well, John Paxton. We knew that you would stop at nothing to bring this whole big, bad, evil government down. You’ve been playing your part…very well.”
“Played my part?”
“That’s right. We’ve been playing you all like instruments. And, we government types do enjoy a good symphony.”
While he rocked back and forth on the couch, Kaspar couldn’t take it anymore. He couldn’t listen to Danny’s voice any longer. He couldn’t care less about being used. Only thing was on his mind. Something had to be done about it.
Right now.
Forty-Two
“Enough of this bullshit!” Kaspar yelled from the couch while he stood.
He charged at Danny from behind. Kilbourne saw him. He reached out and grabbed Kaspar by the arm with his strong hands. Kaspar could feel adrenaline flow throughout his entire body. It allowed him to break free. With a clinched right fist, he landed a sharp hook to Danny’s cheek. That same right hook that Danny taught him how to harness in what seemed like a lifetime ago. The force of the blow caused the old man to spit out his cigarette. Kaspar reached back for another, but his arm became entangled with Kilbourne’s.
“Did you give up my mother?” Kaspar demanded. Tears flowed down his red cheeks.
“Yes, of course I did.” Danny replied.
“You son of a…”
“You should blame yourself for that one, my boy.”
“The hell I should!”
“I knew you would not join this rebellion without…extra incentive.” Danny said.
“What are you talking about?” Kaspar asked. He dropped his hands to his side, fists still clinched together. Kilbourne remained in front of him.
“You’re a selfish person. You never cared about what was going on around you. The only thing you ever cared about was proving something to your old man. I knew that, for you, something would have to be taken away…”
“Don’t you dare try and bring her death down on me.”
“If you had been a good boy, she’d still be around.”
In a fit of rage, Kaspar yanked the Beretta from his thigh holster. He shoved Kilbourne out of the way and held the muzzle to the side of Danny’s head. He felt something then. It felt like cold steel. Kaspar looked to his right. Paxton had the end of his own gun resting on the side of Kaspar’s head. He didn’t care, though. All he needed was a fraction of a second. If his trigger finger, in this case, was faster…
“Ryan!” Paxton ordered. “Back off!”
“To hell with you and your orders.”
“I mean it. I’m not fucking with you this time. I will put you under.”
The smile that crept on Danny’s face made the itch to pull the trigger that much stronger. Paxton pressed the gun further, applying more pressure to the side of his comrade’s head. Reason finally sank in and Kaspar lowered his weapon. Dying now wouldn’t solve anything. After all, Danny was only partly responsible for Mother. The real killers were still out there. If Forte was of any evidence, there could still be some measure of revenge to be had…once the interrogation was finished.
Kaspar pointed his index finger. “You piece of shit.”
“We need answers,” Paxton said as Kaspar turned to walk away. “You did the right thing.”
“Answers, answers, answers,” Danny said. He fished out another cigarette. “You want some real answers, Ryan?”
The question had its desired effect. Kaspar turned and faced Danny, who was busy lighting a cigarette. He took a drag but didn’t say anything. Kaspar approached once more. He could feel everyone’s eyes on him. He ripped the still burning cigarette out of Danny’s mouth.
“What answers?” he demanded.
“How about this: who killed you mother?” Danny replied.
“Who?”
Danny said nothing. He leaned back and smiled again. Kaspar inched the burning end of the cigarette closer to his face.
“Who?!” he demanded once more.
“Their names are: George Mason, DeMarcus Wilcox, and…what that third guy’s name? Oh, yes, William Sullivan. They ran the operation that led to your mother’s death. I don’t know who exactly pulled the trigger, but those are the three monsters you’ve been searching for.”
The tears flowed free. Kaspar used his gloved hands to wipe the tears away. He engraved those names in his memory. Wilcox. Mason. Sullivan. Those three names…they were the only things that gave his life any meaning now. He walked for the front door. He felt a soft hand grip his shoulder. He turned and faced Krys.
“Ryan, wait.” Krys pleaded.
“I’ve waited long enough.” Kaspar replied.
He shrugged the woman’s hand off of his shoulder. Before he walked out, Kaspar got one last look at Danny. Danny smiled. If his smile was an attempt to enrage Kaspar further, he succeeded. Nothing but burning anger could be felt inside. He walked off the porch then reached for his cigarettes. He grabbed one and lit it. Footsteps were heard behind him.
“Ryan, please wait!” Krys called out.
Kaspar didn’t turn. He paused to give her a chance to walk beside him. She gripped his arm a
gain. Kaspar used his free hand to take a drag. Why did she want him to stay so bad? She knew that the only thing he had been living for was revenge. He knew now who he had to deliver justice to. He weighed in on the other option available to him. Which would be to stick around, maybe get killed during one Paxton’s missions? All the while being used by the USR; not knowing who to trust. He looked down at Mother’s fabric and his decision was made.
“She wanted me to make something of myself.” Kaspar said, breaking the silence. “Every day she kept telling me to make something more out of my life.”
“You still can,” Krys replied. “Stay with us. Those three will get what’s coming to them.”
Those brown eyes of hers always told the full story. Kaspar could read Krys like an open book. He could see the concern she felt for him right now. He just couldn’t understand why. He took a drag then looked away.
“This whole time, I’ve thought of nothing but myself.” Kaspar said.
“You can change all of that.”
“I can’t let those men go free. I can’t leave it up to chance. I have to make things right.”
“You’ll catch up to them eventually.”
“That’s not going to cut it for me.” Kaspar turned and stared straight into her eyes. “I’m going after them now.”
“I get it,” Krys replied, the look of concern replaced by one of frustration. “To hell with everyone else, right?”
“I cannot live with myself until those…dogs are put down.”
“You’re impossible. So, go on, then. What’s holding you back? Certainly not me or those suffering people out there.”
He watched as Krys turned her back to him. His mind and heart raced. The right thing to do all of a sudden became muddled. The only thing that was clear as day was that he had only two choices, and he needed to choose one now. Kaspar looked down at the yellow fabric on his flak jacket once more. Mother was taken and for what? So that her son could be recruited into a rebellion only to be used by the same USR that took her?
Kaspar closed his eyes and looked to the sky. In his mind, he asked Mother what he should do.
Rebels & Lies (Rebels & Lies Trilogy Book 1) Page 28